Rope the police in to stop the killing of wildlife

I REFER to the reports on land and marine wildlife misadventures that are now a common feature in our print and digital media.

The recent report on the tapir that ventured into a housing area and died after a failed rescue attempt (the report went viral on social media) has left many Malaysians with a stench that could be tenuously tasted miles away.

I cannot decide which is more unfortunate, the brutal mutilation of the carcass of the tapir or the animal’s death.

Weeks ago, there were reports on the discovery of skeletal remains of endangered sea turtles floating in the sea near Pulau Mabul. Other similar remains were found on the beaches of Bum Bum Island off Semporna.

And before that, there were reports of two Bornean pygmy elephants that were killed for their tusks in the Kinabatangan area. The list goes on.

These reports are no longer unique. There has been a tradition, nay, culture of committing these crimes among certain members in our society. These incidents indicate a growing trend in crime and perhaps even smuggling.

Some may argue that these crimes have a seasonality to it – in the way that during times of poor domestic consumer demand and prior to elections, these cases tend to spike.

There is a clear necessity to stop this killing of our wild animals. Their numbers are dwindling. Many species are either approaching or are already classified as endangered and threatened. The scale at which this list is lengthening is unprecedented.

A suggestion would be to complement the role of the Department of Wildlife and National Parks (Perhilitan) by setting up investigation and enforcement units within the Royal Malaysia Police and Malaysian Armed Forces and subsequently setting up a joint task force. Action should be taken now to reduce the rate of wildlife and marine life obliteration and to give our ecotourism industry a chance to grow.

VETERINARIAN AND NATURE LOVER Bandar Puchong Jaya, Selangor